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Mary Nell Steenburgen (/ˈstiːnbɜːrdʒən/; born February 8, 1953) is an American actress, comedian, singer, and songwriter. After studying at New York's Neighborhood Playhouse in the 1970s, she made her professional acting debut in 1978 Western comedy film Goin' South. Steenburgen went on to earn critical acclaim for her role in Jonathan Demme's 1980 comedy-drama film Melvin and Howard, for which she received the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture and the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Steenburgen also received nominations for a Golden Globe Award for Miloš Forman's drama film Ragtime (1981), a BAFTA TV Award for the drama miniseries Tender Is the Night (1985), and a Primetime Emmy Award for the television film The Attic: The Hiding of Anne Frank (1988).

Steenburgen appeared in many television series and also worked as a singer-songwriter for numerous films, some of which she starred in. For her song "Glasgow (No Place Like Home)", which was featured in the musical film Wild Rose (2018), she received the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Song.

Early life
Steenburgen was born February 8, 1953, in Newport, Arkansas, to Nellie Mae (née Wall), a school-board secretary, and Maurice Hoffman Steenburgen, a freight-train conductor who worked for the Missouri Pacific Railroad. She has a sister, Nancy Kelly (née Steenburgen), a teacher. In 1971, she enrolled at Hendrix College to study drama. She subsequently traveled to Dallas at the suggestion of her drama teacher where she successfully auditioned for New York City's Neighborhood Playhouse.